10 Worst Fates Suffered By Heroes In Horror Movies

Remember when Fr. Damien challenged the demon to possess him instead before heroically leaping out a window to rid both himself and young Regan MacNeil of it?

You probably figured that his death from the fall would be the end for him. Well, it was, until Exorcist author William Peter Blatty got the chance to make a sequel worthy of the original (let's not even speak of The Exorcist II).

Picking up 17 years after the events of the original film, Lieutenant Kinderman (now played by George C. Scott) is investigating a series of brutal murders that lead him to a man who looks exactly like Fr. Karras. It's then that we discover poor Karras isn't quite done in his feud with Pazuzu and is now sharing one vessel with the demon as well as the Gemini Killer, a twisted Brad Dourif-looking serial killer who was executed a few years prior.

The price of Karras' heroism has been demonic possession and torment for almost 20 years. It's a bleak, unpleasant pill to swallow for a man who'd already been through the spiritual ringer in life. Ultimately, he is essentially euthanised by Lt. Kinderman, releasing him from the hellish existence he'd been trapped in.

In a film notorious for its dark subject matter, this depressing character arc is quietly the most unsettling thing on offer.